I’ve never been to Indiana before. OK, so I have “been” there, if you count going through the corner to get to the Warren Dunes. Indiana was supposed to be just a pass-through on my trip. I realized half-way through that I hate driving on highways, no matter how sparsely populated, so it’s become the end-point.

At this exact moment, I’m in or near a town named “Mishawaka”. I stopped here for their wonderful Holiday Inn Express [read: I was tired of driving]. It is a pretty nice hotel, though. It’s a sizable room, with a sizable bed and it’s smoking-permitted. We’ll add the allowance of smoking to the “the things I love about Indiana” list. It was also on the cheap, considering the amenities. Internet, cable, toiletries, coffee/tea/coffee maker, breakfast, microwave, refrigerator, blow dryer, iron/ironing board and there’s supposedly a pool somewhere. I can go with this.

Back to Indiana. I’ve learned a few things about the state so far, some of which piss me off to no end and others that I adore. I’ll start with the negatives, so we can end on a good note.

1. They are morally opposed to giving warning. I drove 8 miles on a highway without a single speed limit sign and the roads weren’t marked ahead of time and didn’t have lights to illuminate the marker.
2. I drove down some pretty crazy streets. Headless horseman kind of creepy, overgrown with trees and completely dark.
3. It’s more desolate than northwest McHenry county, and that’s hard to do. Anytime you see a sign that says “next rest stop in 55 miles” you know you’re in trouble.
4. My phone (and therefore GPS) don’t work for miles and miles.
5. The toll booth system makes no sense and has no explanation. This ties in with #1.

On the positive side

1. I passed a dozen or so discount cigar stores. That’s just cool.
2. It’s quiet and quaint. I passed through a town with a giant steer on a restaurant sign.
3. There’s a grocery store whose name is written in Halloween style spooky letter. Martin’s? I can’t remember.
4. The rest stops provided useful information, like maps that are readable by non-Navy seals.
5. The toll booth attendants were nice. They said “hello” and “good-bye” and “thanks for visiting Indiana”.
6. Gas is cheap.
7. There’s non-commercial things to see. I have a half-dozen brochures on Mennonites and Amish and farmer’s markets and nature preserves. This ties in with #4.
8. Their on-ramp off-ramp system makes a whole lot more sense than Illinois’. On and off. No crazy loops that end up on the same highway going the other way.